Anonymous
My Art
Fine line markers, alcohol markers, Prismacolor colored pencils, and watercolors clutter my table. I sit down on a chair and lay my phone on the table. My black spiral sketchbook is happy to see me. I enter my passcode into my phone. My phone contains a magnitude of apps. I see an app; the app is YouTube. I enter it and see moving pictures that are vibrant, animated, full of life, and different from each other. I want to transfer one of these moving pictures into my black spiral sketchbook.
My phone suddenly erupts with a notification, it seems to be from the NFL app. I transport into the football world and receive intel that Jimmy Garoppolo’s contract is being restructured, he is still a 49er. With this alarming piece of intelligence, I rush to look up more about this contract. I learn through Twitter that it is a one-year contract that will make him NFL’s highest-paid backup. I go back to YouTube endlessly going through a treasure hunt to find the perfect video. What feels like an eternity, is only about 2-3 minutes. Nevertheless, I find a video, “How To Draw A Sunflower | Color Pencil Tutorial.” My fingers waltz towards this video. But I face horror, as an ad with creepy dolls and a family in a haunted house screaming is being projected, only for it to transition into a nice hotel advertising Hilton Hotel.
The tutorial begins with a soothing voice and a hint of an upbeat copyright-free jingle, nothing too distracting. I use graphite to outline a big circle with a smaller circle inside, it looks like a donut. Around the smaller circle, even petals are distributed, the petals are oval like an egg. The bigger circle outline is erased, and the artist brings the sunflower to life. I to bring life to a sunflower. I take the Prismacolor Black and in a circular motion outline the circle. Semi-circles fill the middle of the circle. I use Tuscan Red and Yellow Orange to color the entire circle. A white gel pen highlights areas in the circle. I then use Prismacolor Lemon Yellow to outline the petals and use Tuscan Red to create curved lines. I create small strokes using Tuscan red and Yellow Orange in the outer and inner part of the petals. I use Lemon Yellow to color the middle of the petals. Prismacolor White blends all the petals. I use Tuscan Red and Prismacolor Black to create more depth. I end up with a Sunflower that looks somewhat real. Only for it to feel nonexistent, waxy, and lifeless. I then cave into some TikTok videos. My phone is now the center of my attention.
Nature’s Art
It’s a hot scorching day; it feels like an oven. I’m ready for fall weather to begin. Nevertheless, I am at Ellanor C. Lawrence Park. I wear a Capitals cap and blue Adidas shoes. My legs take me to the ratty old, wooded bridge on top of the pond. Whilst on the pathway, my eyes glaze over a plethora of lily pads. They are green like basil leaves, broad, and heart-shaped with veins. As I pass the pond, the lily pads ascribe a sense of pillows. I want to sleep on them. The pond is a mystery, as I am unable to see what is in the water. The sun is screaming with heat, but the pond whistles with coolness and makes the area slightly more tolerable. My legs leave the bridge onto hard land that is bare and full of dirt. Ahead is a stream and a picnic table, I wonder what nature will reveal next.
The picnic table ahead is old and woody. A family is at the picnic table enjoying the stream whilst devouring some sprinkled donuts. I see that the kids leave their donuts to play by the stream. I too waddle my way to the stream. In awe, my eyes gravitate to massive rocky boulders creating a pathway. The pathway is like nature’s stairs. The first block is rocky, grey, squared, and rough. My feet zoom towards it, and I hop and hop across the stream. As I embark on my journey through the pathway, I stop to see what is around me. I see blackish and greyish stones that create a small waterfall. The water flows through these stones creating ripples and all I hear is plopping and swooshing sounds. Nature’s music is soothing and relaxing, it hypnotizes me, and it calls my name. Next, my hands tiptoe into the water. It feels crisp, steady, and smooth. The stream water is clear, but the algae at the bottom leave a green hue.
The pathway ends, my legs tired, but my eyes wide awake and eager to capture snapshots. Near the water is a bountiful of flowers. The flowers are bright and yellow and look like a ray of sunshine. My hand slithers away to touch it. The petals are delicate, fragile, smooth, and thin. My hands scare away as it does not want the petals to rip. The petals are covered in lines, to create elegance and depth. The anthers are brown, yellow, and fuzzy, like a teddy bear. The leaves of the flowers are green and sharp. Ready to battle if anyone gets close. They feel strong, sturdy, and waxy, but this wax is nature’s doing.
Summary
While creating the sunflower, I was unable to experience its beauty. I was getting distracted by notifications and going through a Twitter rapid hole. I was also drawing while looking through a phone screen. I was unsure of the size, which colors to use, if my strokes were messy and if I was highlighting the right places. I was frustrated because I could not physically touch the flower I wanted to draw. Once done, I did not care about what I drew. Rather than appreciating my artwork, I decided to watch TikTok videos. Looking back, it feels like I wasted my time as I did not care for what I created nor remember the tweets and TikTok videos I watched. What I realized was that my full attention and focus were not on creating the sunflower. Sometimes I wonder if my drawings could be better if I did not get distracted as much. While I was out in nature, I was able to experience its beauty without getting distracted. I was physically able to put my hands into the stream or touch the petals of the flowers. It also felt nice to be in a relaxing and stress-free zone. When I was in nature, I was able to explore the various areas of the park and have a physical memory and sensory-loaded experience. Something the media or technology could not provide me. Whenever I have taken art classes, my artwork has always been around nature and the environment. However, I always used a photo online and never thought to go out and use nature as my reference. I realized that I need to explore nature by being in it rather than looking at it through a screen. We go to exhibitions and museums to appreciate other people’s artwork, but we forget the art nature has provided us.
